1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to computer assisted and computer mediated recording or capture of meeting or presentation events.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional video conference systems utilize a single camera with a single fixed focus to capture a meeting or presentation. This has the advantage that it keeps costs for camera and equipment low but has the disadvantage that the static presentations are perceived as boring. The captured presentation does not follow the flow of speaker or presentation activity within the conference or meeting.
Vendors of conference systems have attempted to address these problems by adding multiple cameras to their systems. While multiple camera systems allow multiple views, a great deal of attention must be focused on operating the system. Multiple video camera conferencing systems require a dedicated operator to perform tasks such as selecting a video feed from the multiple cameras, selecting a camera to zoom, deciding when to switch cameras to focus on another activity in the room and deciding exactly which activity to switch to.
Therefore, conventional multi-camera systems require a trained operator to perform these functions. This imposes additional resource constraints on scheduling and conducting captured meetings and presentations. For example, when the operator is unavailable due to a scheduling conflict or illness, the meeting must be rescheduled. Similarly, if there is a desire to maintain secrecy of the subject mater of the meeting or presentation, the meeting must be scheduled around the availability of an operator with the appropriate clearance, if one even exists.
Bianchi and Mukhopadhyay have developed experimental conference systems, as described in: “AutoAuditorium: a Fully Automatic, Multi-Camera System to Televise Auditorium Presentation,” by Bianchi, M., Joint DARPA/NIST Smart Spaces Technology Workshop, Gaithersburg, Md., July, 1998; and “Passive Capture and Structuring of Lectures,” by Mukhopadhyay, S. et al. in Proc. ACM Multimedia '99, pp. 477-487, 1999. However, these systems only work under the limited conditions of a single speaker making a presentation.